Page 139 of Lucky 14

Oakley throws an arm in front of me as I try to dive for the trashcan to get the pistol.

The man is big, with a top knot of messy hair and tattoos covering his skin. Behind him follows an even bigger man with dark hair and a mean aura, followed by a muscled brunette.

Wyatt claps hands with all of them, and I pause. He…knows them?

Oakley is still trying to pull me behind him, and I growl at him. The fact that he thinks he needs to protect me at every turn pisses me off. Pisses me off ‘cause it scares me. What if he literally does throw himself in front of a bullet for me? I can’t do it again. Maybe I can do it again, but I don’t want to. Not with Oakley. Or Wyatt.

There’s a woman here now, too, and I stop short.

She’s dressed in a cute outfit—jeans and some sort of tank top with her curly blonde hair up in a ponytail and makeup on. She looks so out of place, and my mouth drops open for a second.

“Thank you for coming,” Wyatt says.

“You kidding? Retired life was getting boring.” The man with the top knot is grinning like he was just handed money. “So, where do you keep the goods?”

“Sawyer.” The dark-haired man growls, his gaze sweeping over Oakley and me. Everyone silences, and suddenly, Oakley and I are the center of attention.

I feel Oakley move to block me again, and instead I grab his hand, gripping it, standing beside him. We face them together, staring down the gazes of the three new men. They’re dangerous, I can tell by the way they’re holding their bodies, the cold look in their eyes, and the guns I now see strapped to their belts. Suddenly, I’m glad Oakley stopped me from grabbing the gun.

“Oh, thank god.” The woman throws me a blinding smile. “Too much testosterone.” The brunette beside her subtly grabs the woman’s hand and pulls her to him.

I stare at them, unable to figure out what’s happening. I don’t recognize them as other players. So where the hell did they come from?

I don’t have much time to overthink it ‘cause other voices are coming up, and other people are coming in. It’s Riley, Manson, and Rachel.

For a second, it’s quiet, and then the quiet woman and Rachel dart toward each other. The blonde woman squeals and wraps Rachel in a hug, who returns it. It looks like they’re reuniting. Manson is shaking hands with the other men, and Riley is standing back, evaluating the new men as if she’s sizing up the competition. When the brunette goes to shake her hand, she gives a slight snarl.

“Hey,” the blond—Sawyer—growls, stepping up between them. “You have a problem?”

“No.” Riley arches an eyebrow. “Do you?”

Manson steps up to snarl at Sawyer, and the temperature in the room drops. I have the urge to grab that gun again. Everyone is tense, and the blonde woman pats Sawyer’s arm, pulling him back. “No need for dick measuring.”

“Right.” Riley grins. “‘Cause mine’s bigger.”

Sawyer gives her a long look. It’s a mean one.

“So.” Wyatt gestures at the weapons he’s brought into the living room. “Weston has the main stash of guns.” They start talking about Weston and their plan to eliminate him. All the while, the tension simmers in the room. I pick up that the other two men with Sawyer are Ryder and Miles, and their girl is Cali. Cali and Rachel seem to know each other somehow, and they stand together talking and squealing. Cali reaches out like she’s going to grab Rachel’s neck, and I flinch.

Only, Cali just brushes her fingers through Rachel’s blue-highlighted hair, and they chat excitedly. Watching them makes the old version of Holli feel a sort of homesickness for girlfriends, and that cuts through my chest with a vicious heat.

Will I ever get that?

“You okay?” Oakley murmurs in my ear. I glance at him, and he’s watching me closely. I clear my throat. “Yeah. Uh.” I glance at everyone and stand on my tiptoes to get to Oakley’s ear. He bends for me. “Where did they come from?”

“Not sure.” He frowns as he watches everyone.

“No, I mean, is the plane here?” I ask, voice low.

Oakley freezes.

If the plane is here, then maybe we can escape this island. After everything, we can escape.

I watch Wyatt planning something on a map with Ryder. He’s talking quietly, but I see the urgency in his voice. He looks back at me. Our gazes lock, and for a moment, it’s just us. His gaze softens for a bit, and he turns back.

There’s a weird feeling in my chest, and I focus my attention back on their conversation.

“I can take plenty of them out; we don’t need heavy artillery.” Sawyer is tapping his holster with one finger.